teg Posted January 9, 2010 Share Posted January 9, 2010 (edited) I have 2 400w DE sps lamps I recently got from someone; 1 lamp is supposedly be new and one is old . I bought a new 400w icecap ballast to run it. Got the ballast this on monday and put in the old lamp and it didn't turn on. I replace the old lamp with the new lamp, it ran good until today (I had it on 6hr/day). The new lamp wont turn on now, I tested the pendant (working fine). Now I have two lamps that wont turn on, so I don't know whether the ballast is bad or the lamp is bad. I'm wondering if someone will offer to test these 400w lamps for me, then I'll know if the lamps are bad or the ballast is bad. Thanks ahead for the help. Edited January 9, 2010 by teg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caferacermike Posted January 9, 2010 Share Posted January 9, 2010 Any chance you mixed pulse start with probe start or the other way round? That can destroy the firing mechanism quickly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teg Posted January 9, 2010 Author Share Posted January 9, 2010 I'm not sure if these SPS bulbs are probe start or pulse start (didn't say on the box), but I though Electronic ballast can run any bulb. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caferacermike Posted January 11, 2010 Share Posted January 11, 2010 Nope. Some say they can, however there are different ways that the energy is converted into a frequency and this can wreak havoc on bulbs. This "phasing" can kill bulbs dead. Mag ballasts tend to just drive a bulb however electronic ballasts send out a pulsing phase that uses less electricity. Is the ballasts wired up correctly and well grounded? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teg Posted January 11, 2010 Author Share Posted January 11, 2010 (edited) After reading more about probe start vs pulse start. I think this SPS (south pacific sunlight) bulb is a probe start (it as total of 3 lines connected to the arc tube). Icecap website claimed the electronic ballast "Will drive any 400W Single Ended (mogul) or Double Ended (HQI) Metal Halide Lamp." I think I do have it wired up correctly, the ballast came with plugs and no bare wires. Also, since no one offered to test these bulbs for me, so I took the risk and tested the ballast on my 250w bulbs. I got the "kill a watt" meter to measure the wattage for this test, so that I dont let the ballast draws higher than 300watts, which might damage the 250w bulb. The ballast did drive the 250w bulb nicely; wattage reading rapidly went to 250w within 2 seconds, then slowly rise to 300w (I unplug the ballast at 280w). Now I'm 80% certain that the bulb was bad. Edited January 11, 2010 by teg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caferacermike Posted January 12, 2010 Share Posted January 12, 2010 Yeah Icecap makes a good ballast. I've been running my USED 250w ballasts for 5 years now and have never had an issue. Icecap is being honest that it should fire and run most any bulb out there, the problem is whether the bulb will accept being driven by an electronic ballast. I wonder if the firing pin got blown off. I got some cheaper quality bulbs, (sold to me as Phoenix by a reputable retailer but are not), and the firing pins got knocked out of them within 2 weeks even after returning them 3 times (a total of 5 bulbs were attempted). It made me sick, so I finally order some genuine Phoenix bulbs and have not had a problem since. Look inside the bulb for any loose metal. I wish I had a good pic for a blown firing pin. On some bulbs there is a square piece, or a wire, that touches another wire near the arc tube. This thing heats up when electricity is applied, when heated it springs over firing the bulb on. If it is open it cannot get hot and fire. If it is broken off, well you get the idea. That was what kept happening to me, they would break off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teg Posted January 12, 2010 Author Share Posted January 12, 2010 Thanks so much for the help and great inputs. I really appreciated the help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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